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5-year-old Minnesota ‘mayor’ loses bid for third term

BOY MAYOR: Mayor Robert "Bobby" Tufts, right, shaking hands with a supporter in the tiny tourist town of Dorset, Minn. Tufts lost his bid for a third consecutive term as mayor of Dorset on Sunday, Aug. 4. Photo: Associated Press

DORSET, Minn. (AP) — A 5-year-old boy’s run as mayor is over in a tiny tourist town in northern Minnesota.

Robert “Bobby” Tufts lost his bid for a third consecutive term as mayor of Dorset on Sunday. Sixteen-year-old Eric Mueller of Mendota Heights, Minnesota, won when his name was drawn from the ballot box during the annual Taste of Dorset festival.

Bobby was only 3 when he was first elected mayor in 2013. Dorset, about 150 miles northwest of Minneapolis, has no formal city government and a population ranging from nine to 28.

One of Bobby’s major acts was to declare ice cream top of the food pyramid.

Eric, the new mayor, was prompted to run after eating five fried ice creams at one sitting. He’ll be a high school junior this fall.